Spring 2015

ETO presents one of the best-loved of all operas alongside two extraordinary, little-known jewels of Italian opera composed by bel canto virtuoso, Gaetano Donizetti.

ETO last toured La bohème over ten years ago; this season’s new production of Puccini’s masterpiece is directed by James Conway and features some of the most exciting emerging lyric singers in the UK.

Donizetti’s The Siege of Calais is being revived after the enormous success of ETO’s 2013 production. It tells the story of the sacrifices under siege of the citizens of Calais – and of the sacrifices of citizens everywhere, forced in extreme situations to decide what to give up for their country and their families.

The Wild Man of the West Indies is even more of a rarity, as ETO is the first company to stage it in Britain in modern times. Based on a moving episode in Cervantes’ Don Quixote, it tells the story of a man driven mad when he witnesses his wife’s infidelity. Donizetti deftly weaves comedy with this dark plotline, writing some of his most extraordinary ensembles, in what is sure to be a night of opera unlike any other.